Don’t mention it

How many times have you said this or, that someone has said it to you? It is a response spoken when a person has appreciated a selfless deed that has been done. What you are actually saying is, ‘There’s no need to thank me, in fact, there is no need to even mention it as I was glad to help’.

The conversation came up recently when speaking to a painter mate of mine that I’ve been helping out (not quite sure why I call him a mate as he keeps mentioning how my business books are a great way for keeping his table level). He thanked me and said that he greatly appreciates the chats and advice I give him. This is when I replied, ‘That’s OK! Don’t mention it’. When you do things in life that you love and are passionate about, it makes you feel great as a person. You don’t need or require a response from an act, as the act itself fulfils you. On this occasion though, truth be told, it was nice to hear the ‘thankyou’ and was really glad he did ‘mention it’. An appreciation from a person when not expected, gives you the urge to carry on in what you’re doing. It is the same with volunteers. They give up their time for the love of it as they enjoy helping people in need. They don’t expect recognition or a ‘thankyou’, and they don’t do it for the recognition or a ‘thankyou’, but deep down inside, it makes them feel good to be recognised for what they do and be thanked you for it.

I’d like to give an example of when my wife and I had a home clean-out by getting rid of items we no longer needed. Instead of going through the hassle of selling it online (and because of the current Covid 19 crisis), I decided to donate it all to charity where the money (maybe $600 worth) could be put to good use. The shop I have been going to for the past six months is run by ‘RETO to Hope’ (a non-profit organisation to help people with addiction problems in order to reintegrate them into society). The volunteers there are either past addicts or people going through a rehabilitation process. Each trip I made to the store I was cheerfully greeted and thanked, not like another charity shop I went to that wouldn’t give you the time of the day. Because everyone was so pleasant and polite, I gave them a box of ‘Crispy-Creams’ to share. They were so overwhelmed and surprised by this, they couldn’t thank me enough. How a simple gesture can make a person’s day!

You may be wondering now; ‘What’s the actual point of this article and why put it in a magazine?’ Simply this:

In many businesses, recognition to employees is not mentioned enough. There is too much emphasis on what they do wrong and not enough on what they do right. No matter how many staff you have, you need to praise them when they are performing well or exceeding expectations (I have to admit, I am guilty of not doing this enough when I had employees). Recognition of a job well done can boost the moral and confidence of a person. All it takes is a ‘thankyou’ or a pat on the back.

You can improve on the verbal ‘thankyou’ too by either giving them a bonus, a gift voucher, or a simple thing like buying lunch. There is more chance that employees will stay with you if they are happy and contented with you as a boss, even if they could get a higher wage somewhere else. Keep in mind that this is a gesture of appreciation and should only be applied when the deed is warranted. If you do it on a regular weekly basis for instance, they will expect it every week, even when they don’t perform well. It is a bonus to them and should be earned.

The other benefit also is you will be saving money from not having to look for a replacement. As you may know, it costs a lot to find a good worker, not just in advertising but the time it takes you to train them to what your expectations are. It is much more cost effective to keep the ones you have. In any business, a happy worker is a contented worker and generally produce more work. You will also see less downtime and less sick days as disgruntled employees are more prone to accidents. Being appreciated, wanted, respected, and being paid on time are the major concerns employees have regards to their employment.

Your employees are the back-bone of your company (unless of course you operate alone). Make working for you a pleasant experience.

Jim Baker www.mytools4business.com